While the world waits for a COVID-19 vaccine, exciting developments in portable contact tracing and scanning technology are offering a long-term solution to getting business and events back up and running.
The technology, including a range of cost-effective wearable devices, will give business a means of effective site control and contact tracing for a wide range of applications. Canberra’s Aspen Medical has signed an exclusive agreement with Melbourne-based Smart Badge to distribute the world-leading contact-tracing wearable devices in Australia.
With its instant contact tracing, social distancing alerts and live management of event and venue capacity limits, Aspen Medical says Smart Badge’s wearable technology will strengthen their infection prevention and control advisory solutions.
The facial recognition and thermal scanners control workplace access while giving an alert for any employee with a temperature of 37.5 degrees or above. The wearables, including watches, lanyards and clip-ons, can be used for an almost unlimited range of applications from workplaces to events or festivals catering for up to 40,000 people.
The wearables can be programmed to beep if people do not remain socially distant.
“The beauty of the wearables means that contact tracing can be narrowed down to just the people who have been directly exposed to an infected person. You will not need to isolate everyone on site,” Aspen Medical Group CEO Bruce Armstrong says.
“This will save an entire business having to be shut down if one person is sick.”
Mr Armstrong says event organisers could distribute wearables to ticket holders to provide contact tracing at an event such as a conference or festival, with patrons returning them as they leave.
“The silver lining to the devastation of COVID-19 is that there has never been such a surge in innovation. We are going to be living with COVID-19 for quite some time but businesses, the entire economy, needs to be able to restart,” Mr Armstrong said.
Aspen Medical’s founder and executive chairman Glenn Keys says the Smart Badge products complement Aspen Medical’s existing COVID-19 suite of solutions that includes advisory services around infection prevention and control, training, PPE, mobile and temporary facilities, and healthcare delivery teams.
Aspen Medical is the only commercial organisation in the world certified by the World Health Organisation as an Emergency Medical Team for infectious disease outbreaks. The company has played a significant role in containing the spread of coronavirus in Australia and overseas in the US, Canada, the UAE and across the Pacific.
“We’re seeing strong interest across all sectors; in particular, live entertainment, food manufacturing, aged care, mining, education and construction,” Mr Keys said.
Aspen Medical has already been contracted by Tennis Australia to assist in planning the 2021 Australian Open. The company will be providing infection prevention and control advisory services underpinned by Smart Badge contact tracing technology.
Smart Badge’s general manager Simon Finlayson says the company is thrilled to be partnering with Aspen Medical.
“The coming together of a new tech product, born from the events industry, with a global provider of healthcare solutions is unique,” Mr Finlayson said.
“We’re optimistic that with Smart Badge underpinning Aspen Medical’s COVID-19 plans, we’ll see a return to not just work, but the social gatherings we all enjoy, sooner.”
For more information about Smart Badge and Aspen Medical’s COVID-19 solutions for organisations in every sector of the economy visit www.smartbadge.com.au.